1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

[Scott S.]

The door panels that were on the '67 coupe appear to be original, and seem to be in pretty nice shape (comments welcome, I don't have a large sample size to compare with). I don't know how to tell if they are in fact original, or if maybe they were replaced in the mid-70s or early 80s. My receipt file seems fairly thorough going back to 1974 with even minor maintenance items. Other interior item receipts show the carpet being replaced twice (front only in 1977 from T. Michaelis, and complete replacement in 1986 from Al Knoch) and the headliner replaced once in 1992 (Al Knoch).

There's no mention of replacement door panels

The driver's side door panel has a screw holding part of the arm-rest trim in place. There are dates on the back of each door panel:

Driver's side door panel = August 22, 1966
Passenger's side door panel = September 14, 1966 (stamped twice in different fonts?)

Thanks in advance,

Scott

Driver's Side pictures...

[Scott S.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Passenger side pictures

[Scott S.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Driver's side arm-rest with screw holding in trim, and close up of surface grain by the door-pull.

[Mike M.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

original panels but bubba installed the wod screw. regards,mike

[Scott S.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

original panels but bubba installed the wod screw. regards,mike

Thanks Mike, I'm glad to know these are the original door panels. I will research the archives to find out what (if anything) I should do to preserve the door panels in their current original condition, or "restore them", or whether I should just leave them alone and use them as is.


This carpet tag (dated 12-5-66) was also with the car, and it looks like it matches the sticker on the bottom side of the storage compartment in both age and condition (see pictures below). Is it possible to tell if this is the original carpet tag?

[William C.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

The tags look original. Try to reuse those panels and get a new piece of trim where the screw is holding it on.

[Scott S.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

The tags look original. Try to reuse those panels and get a new piece of trim where the screw is holding it on.

Thanks William. I may try to find a way to save and repair the trim first, since a replacement piece will probably look a little different (newer compared to the rest of the door) and may not fit as well. I haven't investigated by taking it apart yet, but if I can find a way to hold the trim in place properly (or at least less visibly, minus the screw), the screw-hole could be filled in and painted black.

It probably wouldn't be noticeable unless I pointed it out, and it keeps original parts on the car. Worth a try, anyway.

[Timothy B.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Scott,

That small piece of trim with the screw on the door panel is held by bend over tabs about 3/4" long.

[Nick L.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Scott,

I'm late to the game here but I can also confirm those are original. I removed the original black panels (still in excellent condition) from my 67 convertible (S/N 4464) and they look identical. Ironically, mine has the same identical date of September 14, 1966 stamped on the DRIVER's panel (the pass side is too light to make out).

[Scott S.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Scott,

I'm late to the game here but I can also confirm those are original. I removed the original black panels (still in excellent condition) from my 67 convertible (S/N 4464) and they look identical. Ironically, mine has the same identical date of September 14, 1966 stamped on the DRIVER's panel (the pass side is too light to make out).

Thanks for posting the information Nick, it's hard to imagine these old door panels could survive this long and still be in nice condition, but I'm glad they did!

[Scott S.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Scott,

That small piece of trim with the screw on the door panel is held by bend over tabs about 3/4" long.

I tried backing the screw out, and didn't see any bend over tabs along that section. It seems that the trim was under some tension, because with each twist, the door trim pushed away from the panel. The sharp end has dug into the panel also, and was pulling apart as I turned the screw, so before I did any damage, I put it back the way it was. I will try to take it apart carefully when I have time to do it properly.

[Nick L.]

Re: 1967 door panels - original, or older reproductions?

Thanks for posting the information Nick, it's hard to imagine these old door panels could survive this long and still be in nice condition, but I'm glad they did!

Scott,

I agree it's hard to imagine they survived this long. Mine were only taken out as a personal preference to change my Goodwood Green 427 convertible to a white interior. Will get some pics posted of the door panels as soon as I'm able.

Nick